05/06/2025
After being ordered to shut down by the Town of Cheektowaga over concerns about public safety and code violations, the owners of Luna Lounge have decided not to reopen in the same location.
But the movie that was being filmed at the bar and music venue will continue production this month.
According to a notice on the Town of Cheektowaga's page, the former Luna Lounge location will be used as a set for a feature-length film throughout June and July.
The film, called "Punch Andy," is being produced by Luminary Figures Group, a local production company.
Raynel Almonte, one of the founders of Luminary Figures Group, said filming stopped after Luna Lounge was closed by the town. But production will resume this month.
On May 5, the town’s fire safety office issued a cease and desist order, informing the Luna Lounge that its operating permit had been revoked.
Luna Lounge is a bar that also hosts events and live music. It is located on Dingens Street, next to the Best Western and across the street from a school in a residential area. Neighbors frequently complained about the noise.
According to town officials, the business needed to be permitted as a dance hall under town code, but it was not. The town also accused Luna Lounge’s owners of misrepresenting relevant facts in its operating permit application, according to the letter.
Over the last year, Cheektowaga police have been called to Luna Lounge more than 100 times, mostly for noise complaints, but also for reports of fights and other disturbances, said Capt. Jeffrey Schmidt. There have also been three shooting incidents at the venue since it opened in May 2023, Supervisor Brian Nowak said, with the most recent happening at the end of April.
Luna Lounge’s attorney, Jacob Piorkowski, said his clients decided not to reopen Luna Lounge at the Dingens Street location.
When the owners went to the town to apply for a dance hall permit, they were told by the clerk that in 16 years, the town has never issued one of those permits and the clerk didn't know what one was, Piorkowski said.
No one from the Cheektowaga Town Clerk's Office was available to comment on issuing a dance hall permit.
"Luna had been open for two years prior to this cease and desist, and had just renewed all of its permits and licenses with the town just a month or two before all this happened," Piorkowski said. "At no point did anyone mention that there was a dance permit that was required in the town."
Nowak said he can't speak to what was said in the clerk's office, but that the town does have a dance hall permit, it just isn't issued very often. In the more than seven years Nowak has been a Cheektowaga elected official, the town has never issued one.
"It might take a little bit of work on our end to cross every T, dot every I, but it's in our town code," Nowak said of the dance hall permit. "They've been issued since the town code was written many years ago, but in my time as councilman and as supervisor, we haven't had to issue any of those permits."
Luna Lounge's owners considered fighting the town's order in court, Piorkowski said, but ultimately decided it would be too expensive and time-consuming.
"My clients thought, in the greater scheme of things, it's best to close the establishment and then look to see what's next on the horizon for them, whatever that may be," Piorkowski said.
Almonte said his production company has permission from the building's owner to continue filming at the former Luna Lounge and does not need permits or permission from the town to film at a private location.
Most of the filming will be done inside the building, Almonte said.
According to the town's Facebook post, the production company has promised "that they intend to be respectful of the neighborhood and residents, and will not have any music, drugs, or alcohol on-site" during filming. Almonte said the production company went around the neighborhood asking residents to sign a petition in support of continuing to film at the former Luna Lounge.
"We're not going to create any problems within the neighborhood," Almonte said. "We went and did petitions. We spoke to the neighbors, especially guys like right across the street from the Luna Lounge. We heard their stories and discrepancies. We understood why they don't want that."
"Punch Andy" is a drama about a washed-up ex-boxer who allows people to punch him for money. He's forced to confront his destructive relationship with his best friend and the dreams he never achieved.
Almonte said filmmakers are still looking for unpaid extras to be in the film.
Written by
Natalie Bophy
Buffalo News
